Hallandale Beach Blog - A common sense public policy overview offering a critical perspective on the current events, politics, govt., public policy, sports scene and pop culture of the U.S., South Florida and Europe, especially the UK and Sweden.

Friday, August 19, 2016

Controversial and completely-incompatible Chateau Square project in Hallandale Beach deferred until Wed. Sept. 7th; some recent dealings with the Hollywood Police only add to the negative reputation they have in much of the nearby community

I'm re-printing my email of yesterday to Real Estate reporter Brian Bandell of the South Florida Business Journal because it offers me a chance to share with you all some very useful news that I've wanted to share all week, but had put off because I had necessarily planned on doing a number of posts this week on the controversial Chateau Squareproject, and how I and many other careful observers of this part of Broward County believe it would NEGATIVELY affect the residential and business community of our area if allowed to be constructed exactly as developer Chateau Group wants done.

That is to say, the developer wants this city of under 45,000 people to allow him to construct two forty-story towers on top of a number of floors of retail in a part of Hallandale Beach where the nearest large building within a quarter-mile in any direction is no more than 6-7 stories.

In short, to me, this particular project looks more like something that would be more acceptable or appropriate in the business area of Chevy Chase, Maryland, in suburban Washington, D.C., where similar sized buildings are allowed in their high-density transit-oriented area near various Metro train stations, than it would in small Hallandale Beach, Florida, where the current zoning cap for this particular location is twenty stories.

Yes, the developer, Chateau Group wants to erect not one but TWO buildings that are TWICE the current height limit under the city's current zoning rules.

And that on top of a few floors of retail

At what is already the busiest intersection in the entire city!

Where the traffic gridlock in this traffic-centric city already has a longstanding home.

Really.

All photos appearing on this page are by me, South Beach Hoosier, August 2016.

(c) 2016 Hallandale Beach Blog, All Rights Reserved.

DeveloperChateau Group has offered this artist rendering to the city, which has a point-of-view looking SE at the SE corner of US-1/Federal Highway to the right and Hallandale Beach Blvd. to the left.

Did you notice that the rendering actually shows very few cars on the two roads that actually carry the vast majority of the area's traffic? Accident or intentional?

It's hard to say, but you'd be surprised at the large number of Hallandale Beach residents and business owners who mention this fact after they are first presented with a copy of this rendering and asked what their initial thoughts are.

They mention it because they actually live and work here and know the reality of what the city's existing terrible traffic gridlock -even in August, sans snowbirds!- can do to your mood and spirit when you want or need to go somewhere.

It's omnipresent.

Holland & Knight's Debbie Orshefsky is clearly a very smart and capable attorney, as I know from personal experience over the years, but no matter how hard she tries to spin the facts about the traffic to her client's benefit, or tries to mis-characterize the everyday reality of life here, there's no way the centrality of daily traffic upon everyone's life in this city can be minimized or ignored by the five members of the Hallandale Beach City Commission when they vote on this important matter in the coming weeks.

And two of the five Commissioners are running for re-election in November: Bill Julian and Michelle Lazarow.

Above, the southern border of this project would be US-1/Federal highway and Hibiscus Drive, the latter of which is a one block road that ends prematurely because within the past ten years the Hallandale Beach City Commission foolishly allowed Gulfstream Park Race Track and Casino to build their employee dorms right where the road could have been extended to 14th Avenue, behind the exiting Publix super market, and serve as a local traffic only road -with No Trucks- for people on Us-1/Federal Highway heading east towards Golden Islands. Instead of showing some foresight and long-range vision, since the road extension has been discussed for decades by City Hall because of the growing traffic gridlock problem, the HB City Commission, including two members of the current City Commission -Mayor Joy Cooper and Comm. Bill Julian- voted to approve the three dorms in their current site, instead of requiring Gulfstream to locate them elsewhere on its massive property, which for those of you who don't know the area, is located across the street from... Hallandale Beach City Hall.What's directly south of the proposed Chateau Square project? Gulfstream Park Race Track and Casinoandthe Village at Gulfstream Park retail complex.

Looking west on Hibiscus Drive towards US-1/Federal Highway.

Did you know that yet another large retail and office complex is planned for directly across the street (US-1) from this proposed development in the site of what was formerly the Acquo 124 restaurant?

Not many people do judging by the startled looks I've received the past few weeks from usually observant people hereabouts when I've told them that something called Peninsula 124 is trying to get built there.

Here's the artist rendering of the proposed Peninsula 124 building, which is on a large sign posted outside the now vacant restaurant.

But with the news I heard Wednesday night at Hallandale Beach City Hall that voting on Chateau Square had been postponed until September 7th, it gives me some time to get something else off my chest.

So below is my email to Brian Bandell, though I did not have the photo of the Hollywood Police squad car in the email. ----

Just saw your tweet to me.

Tried to call you last night from outside of HB City Hall after the decision was made to defer the agenda item, apparently, per the developer, but the cell phone that had your phone number was the same Samsung phone that was stolen recently in Hollywood, along with my dependable SONY Bloggie camera, not the cell phone I'm using now. :-(

By the way... Police presence on Hollywood beach is getting very problematic and disconcerting.

An award-winning chef and restaurant owner from New Jersey whom I met a few weeks ago and have since become friends with -who's considering opening a location in the SE Broward area- actually had his wallet and cell phone stolen on Hollywood Beach this past Sunday afternoon, even though he was only a few feet out into the water when it happened.

When a Hollywood Policeman FINALLY showed up, he was very matter-of-fact about the theft, and despite the fact that my friend could give a very thorough description of the person who stole it, the Hollywood cop on the scene was very disinterested in getting any details, seemingly more interested in heading on to whatever was the next call that came his way.

The wallet had his NJ drivers license, credit cards and ATM cards, CASH, and most heartbreaking, some photos of his young daughter that were one-of-a-kind, and could not be replaced.

My friend was positively distraught about that, and understandably so.

The cop even said something along the lines of, "What do you want? There are only two police cars on all of Hollywood Beach, so what do you want me to do?"

#dismissive

In the end, my friend was more upset by the cop's attitude than he was by the robbery, esp. when the cop told him that yes, he was going to have to walk a few miles to where he has been staying, since he couldn't do anything to be of help.My friend, obviously, being in no position to pay for a cab or use Uber because of the robbery/theft.

By the time I saw him when he got back, he was boiling mad and distraught.

Once he was a bit more calm, I shared some fact-filled stories and anecdotes with him about the recent history of the Hollywood Police and how their current not-so-favorable reputation got the way it is today.

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Owing to my interests and knowledge, there's a good reason that my popular Twitter feed regularly gets tagged by influential Swedish and Scandinavian companies/businesses, and Biz & media personalities -like the Swedish Consulate in New York, which promotes Sweden in trade, investment, cultural and consular affairs- as well as is tagged regularly by South Florida's #1 #RealEstate reporter: RESULTS.
They all know that what they share with me -and what I share with them- gets SEEN AND NOTICED by people whose opinion matters. Brian Bandell of the South Florida Business Journal knows from experience that I not only know what's REALLY going on below-the-radar in the area, but they also know that I can add something new and compelling to the story or idea. Original content that in turn WILL be seen by those very same influencers, pols and businesses and be commented-upon, and becoming part of the ongoing public policy agenda and narrative! Yes, just like your company's ad in this space will not just be seen but NOTICED! For 2018, I'm averaging between 25,000 and 30,000 individual page views a month.#results!

Well, if something is going to be there w/that large a footprint -esp. cars on already #FDOT F-rated #HallandaleBeach Blvd., part of why @Browardinfo nixed an even larger un-related plan there yrs ago- it's a plus that a firm like @SLSHotels, w/v good rep, is running it. ��️����⛳️

���� folk sensation First Aid Kit are playing twice at Brooklyn Steel this week Sept 11-12 �������� The first night is already sold out - but there's still time to secure a spot for their second show. Don't miss out! ��⏳

I'm interested to see what you think. Two developers proposed zero payment for the land. What will the city prioritize, the most money possible from a real estate transaction, or a project that will generate the most economic activity or community benefit?

Jag älskar Stockholm - ST❤️CKHOLM

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, June 2010

My Twitter header currently features my June 2010 screenshot of Sweden's Crown Princess Victoria moments after her wedding in Stockholm. Her smile = amazing, priceless! Should have posted it years ago!

People died at #stonemandouglas b/c school failed to implement a simple security measure that had been recommended twice to teachers & administrators, according to testimony Wednesday. https://t.co/7HFUYC5Z6z

Some BSO deputies couldn’t remember the last time they attended mass-shooter training. Others couldn’t recall what they’d learned when they did attend, investigators reviewing the #stonemandouglas school shooting found. https://t.co/fgqRDM9NlD

MSD Commission member @maxschachter, whose son Alex died at #StonemanDouglas, criticized BSO's command & communication failures. "We had these same command & control problems at the airport [shooting] in 2017. I don’t see why it wasn’t corrected."

Lauren Book said she's heard teachers are afraid to voice complaints due to retribution. "Retribution is something we don't tolerate in district. If people are doing their job, they shouldn't have concerns about that," Runcie said.

What a country of despicable cowards Britain has become. As the eminent @Ayaan so correctly points out, what is the point of an asylum system if the woman most in need of it is denied protection? https://t.co/Tcj1GHkIf3

Yes, as I've said many times to #Broward/#DC friends, despite disagreeing w/him on policy issues. Like great old campaigns signs I've seen -outside of #FL!- Canova is "a voice, not an echo." #DWS is the annoying echo in yr head that U can't get rid of. @Buddynevins@crespogram

Go back in time with the Florida Stories app! Launched by the Fort Lauderdale Historical Society, the interactive walking tour app will showcase archival photos, architectural renderings and audio histories for 12 locations. https://t.co/sfVh0fWe6G

Makes me wonder what happens when #Wynwood runs out of "genuine" ambiance/atmosphere and everything there feels even more homogenized and/or focus-grouped-to-death than already often seems case. @BillyCorben

Mikaela, my favorite and the most literary and "Big Thinker" of the 3 fabulous Akerman sisters - Malin, Jennifer & Mikaela- also knows how to make a snapshot just pop off the page! Heja Sverige! And Mikaela still writes her wonderful poems and essays with -yes- a typewriter! She is adorable in every possible way! :-)

1/ As usual, I agree w/@CGreenbarg: "Both the #Broward#Schools Auditor and I brought evidence of fraud by a politically connected firm. Reply? “That’s how Broward Schools does business.“ Only an honest outsider could bring reform to a corrupt county." @Colleen_Wright@smtravis

Want to meet other Nordic (minded) people? Head over to the Nordic After Work Social at Hudson Bar in Hudson NYC on Wednesday Oct 17, 6 PM, hosted by our friends at @NordicHouseNY. Come and bring your friends!

Our super-talented singing pal, Cissi Nilsson, continued to keep it real -with style- while on vacation this summer in #Styrsö, on west coast of #Sweden. :-) I can't wait to see Cissi in-person in #STHLM in early 2019, to make up for my postponed trip to Sweden and Iceland this past January, which I was so looking forward to enjoying, and bringing along my favorite human being so that she could see why I LOVE those two places so very much.

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